油 (yóu)

油 means oil. It covers cooking oil used in the kitchen, fuel for vehicles, and any oily or greasy substance. It has the water radical (氵) on the left because oil is a liquid. 加油 (to add oil) is also a very common cheer meaning "Go!" or "Keep it up!"

Meanings

[noun] Oil; cooking oil, fuel, or any greasy liquid substance.
[adjective] Oily; greasy.

Example Sentences

炒菜的时候要先放油。 Chǎocài de shíhou yào xiān fàng yóu. When stir-frying, put oil in first.

这道菜太油了，我不太喜欢。 Zhè dào cài tài yóu le, wǒ bú tài xǐhuān. This dish is too oily; I do not like it very much.

我的车需要换油了。 Wǒ de chē xūyào huàn yóu le. My car needs an oil change.

加油！你一定可以的！ Jiāyóu! Nǐ yīdìng kěyǐ de! Keep it up! You can definitely do it!

Collocations

Collocation	Meaning
食用油	cooking oil; edible oil
加油	to add fuel; to cheer on ("Go!")
油腻	greasy; oily
石油	petroleum; crude oil
菜油	vegetable oil

Memory Hook

油 has the water radical (氵) because oil is a liquid. Think of the shimmer on water's surface when oil is poured in, creating a rainbow slick. That slick is 油.